Dear Colleagues:
Please review the message below from my UMass Amherst colleague, Professor
Norman Sims, who outlines another alternative for students affected by Katrina,
in addition to those already made available by our university system. -BI
-0-
The Journalism program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst
offers online courses that might help students get through the
disruption of Hurricane Katrina. These courses are part of a
Certificate of Online Journalism that helps students master the fine
points of online news -- journalism's fastest growing area.
No application is necessary. Students are welcome to take any course
without pursuing the Certificate. These are credit courses, most of
which are taught by the same instructors we use for on-campus
courses. Students can keep up with their journalism courses while
their home campuses rebuild.
Fall Semester classes start Sept. 7. Because of Hurricane Katrina,
we are holding registration open beyond the start of classes. In the
Fall Semester, we are offering the following courses online:
Journal 201 Intro to Journalism (3 credits)
Journal 293V Citizen Journalism (3 cr.)
Journal 300 Newswriting and Reporting (4 credits)
Journal 393J New Markets in Online Publications (3 cr.)
Journal 395B Advocacy Reporting: Non-profit PR in a New Age (3
cr)
Journal 397W Intro to Web Journalism (3 cr)
Below I have copied course descriptions and faculty biographies.
Classes cost $265 per credit hour plus a $35 registration fee; a 3-
credit course is $830. This turns out to be less expensive than being
a student in residence on most campuses.
Students whose college plans have been disrupted by Hurricane Katrina
can continue pursuing a journalism degree, or supplement another
program, using these transferable credits.
Students can register directly for our courses by going to:
https://www.umassulearn.net/DCEsearch.asp?
search=JOURNAL&type=CrCourseListOl&cat=fall05
I'll be glad to answer any specific questions.
Norman Sims
Coordinator, Certificate of Online Journalism
UMass Amherst
[log in to unmask]
Course descriptions:
Journal 201 Intro to Journalism
This course is designed for anyone with an interest in learning more
about journalism and the process of creating journalism. Those
exploring the field as a possible career option, or those who want to
be better consumers of the news will be equally comfortable. We will
explore the deadlines, headlines, bylines and foul lines of American
journalism. The course will expose students to some great
journalistic writing, will examine the journalist process from
research and interviewing to writing and publishing, and will talk
about the ethics of journalism and its role in modern society.
There will be considerable reading, some writing, mandatory
participation in discussion groups, and students will need a computer
movie player to watch streaming video. The class will be an enjoyable
entrée to the Fourth Estate and the increasingly powerful role it
plays is shaping public opinion.
Steve Simurda [log in to unmask]
Journal 293V Citizen Journalism
Citizen Journalism, also known as Participatory Journalism, is
journalism conducted and disseminated by ordinary people -- that is,
non-journalists. Who is a journalist? The answer to this question is
changing rapidly and significantly; it's discussed daily in
newsrooms, in coffee shops and across the Internet. We'll debate it
in this course, where we will investigate how media companies and
their consumers are harnessing the power of the virtual printing
press to create and change community. Who's doing it? How long before
others catch up? Will they ever? Do they even want to? Can anyone
make money doing it? Students will create and maintain their own web
log as a way to track their research for the course and to share it
with their classmates. Assignments will include essays on how we got
here and where we're going; an in-depth analysis of your local media
through the lens of Citizen Journalism; a case study of a pioneer in
the field, ethics discussions and more. Come to this class prepared
to think, and write, outside the box.
Jill Lang [log in to unmask]
Journal 300 Newswriting and Reporting (4 credits)
This is a basic online introductory course in reporting skills.
Students will read about the morality of journalism, and the ethics
of reporters, plus aspects of media law that affect reporters.
Students will be assigned to read nearly all of Melvin Mencher's 9th
Edition of News Reporting and Writing, plus be assigned polling and
research tasks, and a series of articles based on speeches, meetings,
and interviews. Journalistic aspects covered include the basics of
lead writing using the tools of the trade. From lead writing
exercises we move to sidewalk polling and interviews. Beat reporting
assignments include covering accidents, police, courts, local
government, business and education. Student assignments are linked to
contemporary events and can be carried out wherever the student is
located. Additional lectures and news articles are posted online and
all student articles are shared with the entire class. One of the
main learning centers is the discussion section where many threads
are posted on contemporary issues. All research and writing tasks are
pegged to deadlines to replicate the journalistic need to research
and write under time constraints.
Dr. Frank Faulkner [log in to unmask]
Journal 393J New Markets in Online Publications
From Gutenberg to Gates, from the printed to the electronic word,
the very idea of what constitutes a "publication" has undergone a
transforming revolution. With a focus on blogs and e-books, New
Markets in Online Publications will examine this huge change while
providing students with an opportunity to engage in and with both the
material and the medium. Today, the ease and speed of online
reporting is impacting not only the way journalists get and
distribute their stories but also the style and format in which they
have traditionally written their best work. The twin phenomena of
blogs and e-books are opening new pathways for journalists, both in
getting their work published and in reaching newer, larger audiences.
Through online readings and discussions we will trace the evolution
of these new, hybrid media while examining how they may be changing
the way journalists cover certain subjects and the manner in which
traditional publishers produce and market books. Many of the old
rules no longer apply as online journalists adopt a hipper, edgier,
freer style in which to report and publish extended nonfiction
narratives. We will also look at the technologies that make these new
media possible.
Carl Vigeland [log in to unmask]
Journal 395B Advocacy Reporting: Non-profit PR in a New Age
This course documents the work of a new kind of public relations
practitioner, trained in the methods of public relations and online
reporting. This course will help students learn to research and write
materials about important social issues such as the environment,
disease prevention, freedom of the press, crisis communications, and
other topics likely to be faced in a not-for-profit or governmental
setting. Case studies will include issues related to universities,
national research labs, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
such as Green Peace, Physicians Without Borders, National Audubon
Society, or the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. The class
will publish an online journal as its final project. Texts will be
provided.
Art Clifford [log in to unmask]
Journal 397W Introduction to Web Journalism
What is web journalism and how is it different from a traditional
newsroom?
Class will survey current trends in online news and the mainstream
media.
Focus is given to the efficacy of digital storytelling with video,
blogs, podcasts and other emerging Web technologies. Basic HTML
programming, production of sound and images for the web, writing for
the web and content development for web design. Students will learn
the fundamentals of graphic design for online publications and create
a complete Web site as part of their course requirements.
Keith Paul [log in to unmask]
Faculty:
Art Clifford, one of the designers of the Certificate, has also
served as an Air Force officer and has taught at the Defense
Department's Journalism School (DINFOS) or Defense Information
School. His graduate work was at the University of Oklahoma, New York
University, and UMass Amherst where he earned an M.A. in Mass
Communication (1977). He is currently enrolled in a Master's in
Library Science program at the University of Illinois as a distance-
learning student.
Frank Faulkner was in the military, covered the Vietnam War for UPI
from 1966-68, and was an international photographer from 1972-76. He
completed a Ph.D. in communication at the University of Massachusetts
Amherst and wrote his dissertation on the American news media
coverage of Vietnam. Faulkner worked as an investigative reporter and
city editor at the Springfield Daily News, and taught journalism and
humanities at UMass and at Holyoke Community College. He was
Executive Officer at Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts from
1986-93. He now lives in Ireland.
Jill Lang has more than 20 years experience in community journalism.
A 1986 graduate of the UMass Amherst journalism program, she also
holds a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School
of Journalism, where she was a member of the class of 1989. She has
covered community life, local government and schools for the
Gloucester (Mass.) Daily Times, the Portland Press Herald, Maine
Sunday Telegram and the Rockland (Maine) Courier-Gazette. She also
has done extensive PR work for non-profits in the communities where
she has lived. Currently she is a contributing editor at VillageSoup,
the online community publishing company based in Camden, Maine. Jill
has spent the past seven years building VillageSoup's unique
community journalism model, which merges a community online with a
local weekly newspaper. The VillageSoup Times, which Jill launched
and edited, was named best in Maine (Maine Press Association) and
best in New England (New England Newspaper Association) its first
year out of the gate.
Keith Paul is an alumnus of UMass Amherst who began working in the
campus Public Affairs Office in 1996 while still a student. During
his time there, he helped UMass earn national recognition for its
official Web site and became a founding member of the university's
Web Development Group. When he left UMass in 1999, he took a position
at Western New England College as their senior Web expert. He was
instrumental in helping WNEC begin a highly regarded PR campaign to
raise funds for the campus endowment. He returned to UMass in 2002 as
principal advisor to departments creating or revising their Web sites.
Stephen J. Simurda is a lecturer in Journalism and a freelance
magazine writer, Simurda earned a bachelor's degree from Hampshire
College and a master's degree from the School of Journalism at
Columbia University (1983). He has worked for newspapers in
Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and California. He also worked in the
San Francisco bureau of the Associated Press from 1984-86. Since then
he has worked as a freelance journalist for dozens of newspapers and
magazines, including: The Washington Post, Boston Globe and Globe
Magazine, Philadelphia Inquirer, Columbia Journalism Review, Lingua
Franca, Mother Jones, Worldbusiness, and Yankee. He served as a
Fulbright professor in the Slovak Republic. He has been teaching at
UMass since 1993. Simurda teaches magazine article writing, media
criticism, and courses on the literature of journalism.
Carl Vigeland is the author of five books on music and golf,
including Jazz in the Bittersweet Blues of Life (2001), in
collaboration with trumpeter and composer Wynton Marsalis. Vigeland
has written for many magazines, including The Atlantic Monthly, The
New York Times Magazine, and DoubleTake. A graduate of Harvard,
Vigeland earned his masters degree from UMass Amherst, where he has
taught in sports studies and journalism since 1996.
On Sep 5, 2005, at 5:47 PM, [log in to unmask] wrote:
> Norm -
>
> No surprise to find you steps ahead. It's great you have specific
> targets to
> address.
>
> One thing that might be useful could be to post the possibility on the
> minorities and communication listserv, [log in to unmask] (and
> perhaps
> others), with an e-mail directly to that address. I can monitor
> the activity,
> from there; or, if you prefer, post it for you, watch to see if
> there's any
> result.
>
> The other thing that's perhaps more promising that I've just
> discovered in
> looking in the last minute is the first item accessible from the
> AEJMC home
> page: http://www.aejmc.org/ specifically
> http://www.aejmc.org/helpkatrinastudents.html where five
> institutions in the
> South are listed with what they're doing to help. That site might
> be even more
> helpful; and the exposure, at minimum, would be good, since there's
> no one from
> the North/New England, the Midwest, or the West currently listed.
>
> Bill
>
>
>
>
> Quoting Norman Sims <[log in to unmask]>:
>
>
>> Bill,
>>
>> I was thinking as you were about online offerings. Here's a copy of
>> an e-mail I sent to Peg Wherry and Michael Gargano on Saturday, along
>> with Peg's reply on Monday. I think I'll send a note directly to the
>> people in journalism at Tulane and Loyola, and possibly at LSU as
>> well.
>>
>> Norm
>>
>>
>> Begin forwarded message:
>>
>>
>>> From: Peg Wherry <[log in to unmask]>
>>> Date: September 5, 2005 11:31:24 AM EDT
>>> To: Norman Sims <[log in to unmask]>, Michael Gargano
>>> <[log in to unmask]>, Heather Miller <[log in to unmask]>
>>> Cc: Art Clifford <[log in to unmask]>,
>>> [log in to unmask]
>>> Subject: Re: Katrina enrollments
>>>
>>>
>>> As you probably know, the President's office has committed UMass to
>>> expedite admission for students affected by the hurricane. Since
>>> students do not have to be matriculated to take courses through CE
>>> for the online jounralism certificate, the admissions process is
>>> already expedited.
>>>
>>> UMOL is in contact with the Sloan-C consortium to offer a special
>>> Katrina semester of online courses beginning October 10. The idea
>>> is for Sloan to subsidize the courses that could be offered to
>>> students free of charge. I am watching to see what develops there--
>>> the subsidy proposed would not cover our costs.
>>>
>>> http://chronicle.com/katrina is a website run by the Chronicle of
>>> Higher Ed that includes statements from affected institutions and
>>> links to institutions offering assistance. Loyola and Tulane are
>>> two prominent institutions who have already announed plans to
>>> cancel the fall semester AND to outline options for students
>>> (Tulane says they'll accept credits from any regionally accredited
>>> institution). A lot of effort seems to be being coordinated by
>>> associations--both the big general ones (AAU and NASULGC) and
>>> smaller discipline-based ones (geographers). If you want to explore
>>> options at the discipline level (until we have more info from the
>>> institution) you might look at websites of assns in your field.
>>>
>>> I haven't shoved a dipstick very far into the Shronicle/SCUP list
>>> of institutions that have offered help, but the press release from
>>> the U of Iowa is strikes me as remarkably thorough--down to telling
>>> their mail room not to send out anything to affected zip codes.
>>> That release also mentions discipline-based contacts.
>>>
>>> Sorry I can't be more definitive at the moment. I share your
>>> impulse of wanting to help. More news as it happens. - Peg
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Norman Sims"
>>> <[log in to unmask]>
>>> To: "Peg Wherry" <[log in to unmask]>; "Michael Gargano"
>>> <[log in to unmask]>; "Heather Miller"
>>> <[log in to unmask]>
>>> Cc: "Art Clifford" <[log in to unmask]>
>>> Sent: Saturday, September 03, 2005 5:56 PM
>>> Subject: Katrina enrollments
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> Peg,
>>>>
>>>> I think we could help a lot of journalism students at LSU, other
>>>> institutions in New Orleans, and others in Louisiana and
>>>> Mississippi who have had their colleges closed by Hurricane
>>>> Katrina.
>>>>
>>>> We have a Journalism program online that is offering six courses
>>>> in the fall semester. All of them have space right now. Here's
>>>> the list:
>>>>
>>>> Journal 201 Intro to Journalism
>>>> Journal 293V Citizen Journalism
>>>> Journal 300 Newswriting and Reporting
>>>> Journal 393J New Markets in Online Publications
>>>> Journal 395B Advocacy Reporting: Non-profit PR in a New Age
>>>> Journal 397W Intro to Web Journalism
>>>>
>>>> Is there any way to let students at those compromised
>>>> institutions know that this opportunity exists? It would be a
>>>> LOT cheaper for them to take courses online as opposed to moving
>>>> to Amherst, and these credits would transfer to their home
>>>> institutions when they reopen.
>>>>
>>>> Norman Sims
>>>> Coordinator, Certificate of Online Journalism
>>>> [log in to unmask]
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
>
----- End forwarded message -----
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